Wire straightener and cutter



Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER 1 a 1 m H t m a M TM P h N a a mg, n m mw fl h h S m- 7 R Nm Y B \N 6 4 9 1 w \N n w s d w. 1 F

Nov. 29, 1949 Q J. H. MOORE 2,489,921

WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER Filed Se t.- 12, 1946 I 7 Sheets-Sheet z IN VEN TOR. .fa/m Mace/.5

Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE 2,489,921

WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER Filed Sept. 12, 1946 '7 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. .7519 h. M0025) [Train 5X5.

Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 12, 1946 Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER Filed Sept. 12, 1946 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 2 0 m 0 a1 1 2 21m 1 Wm .H. 4 i h NH 1 9 f fi mm 2 .12 a 2 w W n M 4 fi i H J 5 1 IN V EN TOR. .J/m bf M00243 Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Sept. 12, 1946 INVENTOR- .70///Y JY. M004 5,

Nov. 29, 1949 J. H. MOORE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 Filed Sept. 12, 1946 INVENTOR- N 1%0025,

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Patented Nov. 29, 1949 PATENT OFFICE WIRE STRAIGHTENER AND CUTTER John H. Moore, Roscommon, Mich., assignor to Carl W. Richter, Rochester, Mich.

Application September 12, 1946, Serial No. 696,540

4 Claims.

My invention is a machine for straightening and cutting wire and tubing.

It is the object of my invention to provide a machine which straightens wire or tubing, and cuts it into straight pieces of adjustably predetermined length; and which does this effectively and expeditiously, with minimum delay of the travel of the wire or tubing through the machine, and with little or no marring of the wire or tubing during the cutting-off operation.

In carrying out my invention, I pass the wire or tubing first through a rotating spi nner having a number of pairs of transverse pusher-dies through which the moving wire or tubing passes and which act to bend it back and forth to straighten it; a pair of feed rolls between which the wire or tubing passes and which pull it through the spinner and push it through the cutofi device and along the length-measuring device; a cut-off device having a transversely reciprocable blade which on each of its transverse movements, in either direction, cuts off the wire or tubing, and which makes its cutting-off stroke on the first half of a movement initiated by the lengthmeasuring device, and in this way reduces to a minimum any stoppage of the wire or tubing incident to the cutting-01f operation; a lengthmeasuring device which moves transversely with the cutting-ofl? knife, and which has two parallel wirereceiving openings which are brought respectively into line with the on-coming wire at the two stop-positions of the cut-off knife and length-measuring devicefand clutch mechanism which is set into operation when the on-coming wire or tubing reaches an adjustably predetermined position in the length-measuring device and which operates to produce a single transverse movement, alternately in opposite directions, of the cut-ofi blade and the length-measuring device.

The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention:

Fig. 1 is a plan of my wire-straightening and cutting machine, with an intermediate part of the length-measuring device broken away; Fig. 2 is a schematic end view of the belt drives shown at the left of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the wire-straightening and cutting machine of Fig. 1, with some parts broken away, and with some parts in section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 in the vertical plane of the traveling wire; Fig, 4 is a fragmental transverse vertical section through said machine, substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 5, to show the cut-off mechanism and its operating drive; Fig. 5 is a fragmental horizontal section substantially on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, to show the wire-feeding and cut-off mechanism and part of the length-measuring device, and their operating drives; Fig. 6 is a fragmental vertical section substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmental elevation of the cut-off blade and directly associated parts; Fig. 8 is a schematic view of the mounting and geardrive of the feed rolls; Fig. 9 is an enlarged vertical section, with some parts in elevation, on the line 9-9 of Fig. 1, showing the one-revolution clutch; Fig. 10 is a vertical transverse section on the line l0l0 of Fig. 9, with the clutch dog in clutching position; Fig. 11 is a view similar to the upper part of Fig. 10, but with the clutch dog in un-clutching position; Fig, 12 is a transverse section through the rocker shaft for operating the cut-off knife and the length-measuring device, with a fragment of its operating mechanism as seen from the right-hand end of Fig. 9; Fig. 13 is an. enlarged plan of the clutch-control mechanism at the end of the length-measuring device; Fig. 14 is a section on the line "-44 of Fig. 13; Fig. 15 is an end View of the clutch-control mechanism shown in Figs. 13 and 14, and the associated rack and pinion for operating it; Fig. 16 is a vertical longitudinal section through the length-measuring device, substantially on the line l6-l6 of Fig. 1'7; Fig. 17 is a transverse section on the line l1l| of Fig. 16; Fig. 18 is a trans verse section through the ratchet mechanism, taken substantially on the line l8l8 of Figs. 5 and 19; Fig. 19 is a fragmental section on the line Ill-l9 of Fig. 18; Fig. 20 is a fragmental partial elevation, and partial longitudinal section on the line 20-20 of Fig. 21, through the cut-ofi mechanism and clutch-control mechanism, of a modification particularly adapted for tubing; Fig. 21 is a transverse section on the line 2l-2l of Fig. 20; Fig. 22 is a partial elevation, and partial vertical longitudinal section substantially on the lines 2222 of Figs. 23 and 24, of a modified drive mechanism for the cut-off blade and wire-receiving plate, embodying an intermittent gearing in place of the ratchet and rock-shaft and rockerarm mechanism of earlier views; Fig. 23 is a vertical transverse section on the line 23-23 of Fig. 22; and Fig. 24 is a transverse vertical section on the line 24-24 of Fig. 22.

A main frame 25 carries most of the working mechanism. Suitably mounted on it is a motor 26 having a shaft 21 carrying a large pulley 28 and a small pulley 29. The large pulley 28 is connected by a belt 30, conveniently a V-belt, to a smaller pulley 3| on a hollow spinner-shaft 32, rotating at high speed and suitably mounted in ball bearings carried in pedestals 33 supported by the frame 25. On the spinner shaft 32 is a spinner 34,

2 the body of which is conveniently of one piece with the spinner shaft 32.

The wire 35 which constitutes the work (and by the term "wire" I include tubing when the context permits,) and which is to be straightened and cut into pieces of adjustably predetermined length, passes through the hollow spinner-shaft 32 and the spinner 34, entering at one end (theseveral pairs of pusher-dies 40 are differently adjusted, so that the wire 35 as it passes lengthwise through the spinner is deflected by the successive pairs of pusher-dies, alternately in opposite directions, with the rotation of the spinner body superposed upon that alternate opposite deflection. This results in an effective straightening of the wire, so that the wire as it leaves the spinner 34 and spinner-shaft 32 at the right end thereof is effectively straight.

Just to the right of the spinner 34 are a pair of mating feed rolls 45 and 46, each circumferentiallygrooved. At the meeting points of the two feed rolls 45 and 46, the circumferential grooves in them form a wire-receiving opening in line with the axis of the spinner shaft 32; and the two rolls 45 and 46 grip the wire 35 and pull it through the spinner 34, and pass it on to the cut-off mechanism and length-measuring mechanism farther to the right.

The two feed rolls 45 and 46 are mounted on the free ends of roll-carrying arms 41 and 48,

- in turn mounted on pivot-pins 49 and 50 respectively. The free end of the lower roll-carrying arm 41 rests on an adjusting screw by which it may be adjusted up and down to proper position. The free end of the upper roll-carrying arm 48 is pressed downward by a spring-actuated pin 52, which thus acts to force the upper feed roll 46 against the wire 35, and to force the wire against the lower feed roll 45, to obtain the desired grip of the feed rolls on the wire. The strength of this grip is adjustable by a setscrew '53 for adjusting the spring 54 acting on the pin 52; and the adjustment of this screw 53 is such that the feed rolls 45 and 46 effectively pull the wire through the spinner 34, and push it on through the wire-cutting and length-measuring devices, but can slip on the wire slightly as demanded when a split-second stoppage of the wire occurs during the cutting-off operation. For reasons which will be apparent, this stoppage is for such a short time that the pusherdies 40 do not materially mark the momentarily stationary wire 35.

The feed rolls 45 and 46 travel in opposite directions, indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3, to move'thewire 35 from left to right. The power for obtaining this motion is derived from the small pulley 29 on the motor shaft 21. A belt 60, conveniently a v-belt, connects the small pulley 23 to a larger pulley 6| on a feed-roll-drive shaft 62, which is connected by a bevel gearing 63 to a transverse shaft 64. The shaft 64 carries a gear 65, which meshes with an idler pinion 65 rotatable on the axis of the pivot pin 49. The idler pinion 66 also meshes with a gear 61 fixed to the feed roll 45; and the gear 61 meshes with a same-size gear 66 fixed to the feed roll 46. This driving mechanism serves to drive the two feed rolls 45 and continuously while the motor 26 is in operation; to feed the wire 35 continuously through the spinner 34 from left to right (Fig. 1) unless that wire is stopped in some manner, in which event the feed rolls 45 and 46 slip a little on the momentarily stationary wire. The mechanism is such, however, that any such stoppage of the wire is of minimum duration, of the order of a small fraction of a second.

After leaving the feed rolls 45 and 46, the wire 35 enters a cut-off bushing 10, suitably held in the frame 25, having a longitudinal hole through it in line with the discharge from the feed rolls 45 and 46 and of barely sufficient size to permit the free passage'of the straightened wire 35.

The discharge end of this cut-off bushing '10 (the right-hand end as seen in Figs. 1 and 3) is the stationary shear member of the cut-off mechanism, and co-operates with a movable shear blade II. This shear blade ll is held by a screw I2 in a vertical groove 13 in a transversely reciprocable cross-head l4, suitably mounted in extensions 15 of the frame 25 to move horizontally and rectilinearly in a vertical plane perpendicular to the straightened wire 35.

The shear blade ll of the cut-off mechanism is arranged to cutthe wire on each stroke, forward or backward; so that it comes to rest after making a cut by moving once across the wire, and does not at once return to its original position. In this way any stoppage of the wire 35 for a cutting-01f operation is made as short as possible. If solid wire or sturdy tubing is being cut, the shear blade II is of the shape shown enlarged in Fig. 7; and has a fairly wide body by which it is fastened in the groove 13, and a relatively narrow downwardly projecting shear portion which on a stroke in either direction moves completely across the area of the wire 35 between the full and dotted line positions of Fig. 7, and thus shears the wire on either stroke.

After leaving the cut-01f mechanism, the wire travels through a short open space, and then passes on to the upper flat surface of a stationary wire support 80, which extends to the right (Figs. 1, 3, and 16) somewhat farther than the greatest length of wire to be cut off. The upper face of the wire support is flat, and lies in a horizontal plane; and is somewhat narrower than than the body of such wire support, to which it is connected by two sloping wire-discharging faces, as is clear from Figs. 6, 7, and 17. On both the front and rear sides of the wire support 80 if desired, and slightly spaced therefrom, there may be vertical guide plates BI and 82, which extend the full length of the wire support; but these may be omitted. At the ends toward the main frame 25 (the left-hand ends in Figs. 1, 3, and 16) the wire support 80 and the guide plates BI and 82 rest on and are fixed to brackets 83; and at the ends remote from that main frame (the right-hand ends in Figs. 1, 3, and 16) they rest on a suitable pedestal 84, of which the upper part forms a notched carrying bar 85 which directly carries them, as is perhaps most clearly shown in Fig.

On top of the wire support 80 is a wire-receiving plate 90, which on its under face has two longitudinal wire-receiving grooves ill and 92 respectively. These grooves 9| and 02 extend the whole length of the wire-receiving plate and that wire-receiving plate is bodily reciprocable horizontally across the upper face of the wire support 00, to bring either the groove 9| or the groove 92 over the medial plane of the wire support 00 and into line with the hole through the cut-off bushing I0. Either the groove II or the groove 92 may thus be moved into position to receive the on-coming wire from thegcut-oif bushing I0; and ineither case the other of 'such grooves 9| and "92 is over an open space either in front of or behind the wire support 00 and wire support 00 and in line with the on-coming wire 05; while on the next half-turn of the counter-shaft 98, the half-turn which moves the shear blade 'II backward, the eccentric 90 moves the connecting rod I011 also backward; and so rocks the rockshaft I02 backward to move the tworack bars I06 backward, and thus to move thewire-receiving plate 90 backward to bring the wire-receiving groove -9| into the medial .10

plane'of the wire support 00 and in line with the on' coming wire 35;

Thus the counter-shaft 95, which moves a half-turn at a time, acts on one half-turn to between that wire support and one or the other of the two guide plates 0| and 02-.- Thus when the front wire-receiving groove 9| is receivin the on-coming wire, a cut-off length of wire is 1 being dropped from the open under-face of the rear wire-receiving groove 92 into the space between the wire support 00 and the rear guide -move-.both-the shear blade II and the wire-receiving plate 90 forward, and on the next halfturn' to move both of them backward. The counter-shaft 95 is given this intermittent 1 movement, a' half-turn at a time always in the plate 02; and when the rear wire-receiving groove 92 is receiving the on-coming wire; a cutoff length of. wire is being dropped from theopen under-face of the front wire-receiving groove 0| into the space between the. wire support 00 and the front guide plate 0I v At its left-hand .end,- Figs. 3 and. icy-ca h wire-receiving groove 9I and 92- has a counter sunk portion 93, mating with a counter-sunk portionat the left-hand end of the upperi-face of the wire support 80, to provide a flaring entrance for the on-coming wire to the receiving end of that wire-receiving groove.

The cross-head H with its shear blade thewire-receiving plate 90, move substantially. in unison, either to their forward positions or ii, and

same direction, from a driving mechanism which includes both a one-revolution clutch and an intermittent drive, and which is controlled by a trip mechanism operated by the on-coming wire when the wire'extruded from the cut-off bushing '10 has reached the desired length. The intermitt'ent drive may be a ratchet or an intermlt tent gearing: both of which are shown as modifications, 'the ratchet in the earlier figures and the intermittent gearing in Figs. 22, 23, and 24.

' The power for' thehalf-turn operations of the counter-shaft 95 is supplied from the shaft 62,

. which is provided with a pulley H0 connected by'a belt III to a pulley H2 loose on a shaft H} '-but connectible tosaid shaft H3 by the onerevolution clutch above referred to. The shaft H3 is normally at rest; while the pulley H2 is normally in constant rotation, in the direction of to their rearward positions. They receive power the arrow in Fig. 10. On its right-hand face (Fig; 9) the pulley H2'carries a clutch-ring H4,

rod 99 to the rear end of the cross-head I4, and

this eccentric and cross-head are of sufilciently sturdy construction for the shearing operation of the shear blade II against the cut-off bushing I0. On one half-turn of the counter-shaft 95, the eccentric 91 moves that shear blade II forward for one shearing operation. On the next half-turn of the counter-shaft 95, the eccentric 91 moves that shear blade 'lI backward for the next shearing operation.

The eccentric 98 is connected by a connecting rod I00 to the crank-arm IOI on a rockshaft I02; which extends parallel to and in the rear of the wire support 80 for substantially the full length thereof.

At each end the rock-shaft I02 carriesa pinion I03; and each pinion I01 meshes with a rack-bar I06 extending transversely across the wire support 80 and the guide plates III and 82 and suitably attached to the wire receiving plate 90. On the same half-turn of the-'counter shaft 95 which moves the shear blade H forward, the eccentric 98 moves the connecting rod I00 alsoforward; and so rocks the rock-shaft I02 forward to move the two rackbars I06 forward, and thus to move the wirereceiving plate forward to bring the wirereceiving groove 92 into the medial plane of the 'of the constantly moving pulley havin an inner circumferential series of teeth H5. A clutch dog H6 on a carrying pin HI,

mounted eccentrically in the shaft H3 parallel tothe shaft axis, lies inside the clutch-ring H0,

and is movable either outward into the circular path of the teeth H5 or inward out of that cir- 'cular' path. The carrying pin II! also carries an operating finger H8, the inward or outward movement of which controls the position of the clutch dog I I6 so that it either engages or misses the traveling teeth H5 of the clutch-ring H0. A compression spring H9 acts on the operating finger H0 and tends to push it outward, to move the clutch dog H8 into the path of the teeth I I5.

A cam plate I20 lies in the transverse plane of the operating finger H8, and is movable either to the inner or unclutching position of Fig. 11 or to the outer or clutching position of Fig. 10. When I the cam plate I20 is in its inner or unclutching position (of Fig. 11), in which it normally stands, it pushes the operating finger I I8 inward against the spring H9, and so pushes the clutch dog H6 I I3. When, however, the cam plate I20 is moved to' its outer or clutching position (of Fig. 10), it permits the operating finger I I8 to be moved outward by the spring H9; and this permits the spring H9 to move the clutch dog H6 into the 'path of the teeth H5, so that the first of such teeth I I5 which then comes along in the rotation that clutchdog H6 and through it clutches the pulley to the shaft H3 to rotate the latter, also in the direction of the arrow of Fig. 10. That rotation is for only one revolution; for, by mecha- I I2 engages ward movement of such cam plate I20 to the releasing position shown in Fig. 11. So as the shaft I I3 completes one revolution after being clutched to the pulley II 2, the operatin finger II9 strikes the camming surface of the cam plate I20 and it and the clutch dog I I6 are moved outward thereby to the unclutching position of Fig. 11, to produce a declutching of the shaft I I3 from the pulley I I2. Over-run of the shaft I I3 is prevented by a spring-pressed brake shoe I2I acting on a collar I22 keyed to the shaft II3, as is clear from Fig. 9.

In the modification which uses a ratchet (or 'over-running clutch, shown best in Figs. 9, 12, 18,

and 19, the collar I22 carries an eccentric pin I25, which is connected by a connecting rod I26 to a rocking gear-segment I21 meshing with a pinion I28 on a rock-shaft I29 in line with and closely adjacent to the counter-shaft 95. The eccentric pin I25 normally stands at the bottom of its eccentric throw, as is shown in Fig. 4, so that the rocking gear-segment I2'I is in its bottom position and the rock-shaft I29 is as far clockwise (Figs. 4 and 12) as it can go. When the cam plate I is moved to its clutching position, to

produce clutching for one revolution between the pulley II 2 and the shaft II3, the eccentric pin I also moves through one revolution, in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 4, to reach its topmost position (shown in Figs. 3 and 9) and then to return to its bottommost position. This moves the rocking gear-segment I21 first upward and then downward; and this rocking movement of the gear-segment I2'I moves the rock-shaft I29 first counter-clockwise (Fig. 12) for a half-turn and then clockwise for a half-turn.

A ratchet or over-running clutch; above referred to, interconnects the rock-shaft I29 and the counter-shaft 95 so that they move together during the first or counter-clockwise half-turn of the rock-shaft I29, but so that the counter-shaft 95 stands still during the return or clockwise halfturn of the rock-shaft I29. This ratchet mechanism or overrunning clutch is best shown in Figs. 18 and 19.

Two collars I33 and I34 are suitably fastened on the abutting ends of the rock-shaft I29 and the counter-shaft 95 respectively. The collar I34 carries outwardly projecting ratchet teeth I35, shown as two in number and as diametrically opposite each other; and these teeth I35 have radial faces at their clockwise ends as viewed in Fig. 18, and inclined faces at their counter-clockwise ends. The outer part of the collar I 33 overhangs the teeth I35, and completely encloses them circumferentialiy. Two pins I36 are pivotally mounted in diametrically opposite eccentric holes in the collar I33, and each pin is spring-pressed counter-clockwise (as viewed in Fig. 18) in its carrying hole. Each of the pins I36 is provided in the transverse plane of the teeth I35 with a segmental head I31; which tends to stand in the position shown in Fig. 18 by the spring pressure on the associated pin I36, to interengage the radial face of one of the teeth I 35. This provides a driving connection from the rock-shaft I29 to the counter-shaft 95 when the rock-shaft is moved in the counter-clockwise direction (Fig. 18). But when the rock-shaft I29 is moved in a clockwise direction (Fig. 18) the camming action of the inclined counter-clockwise faces of such teeth I35 cam the segmental heads I31 out-of the way of such teeth, so that in that clockwise direction of movement of the rock-shaft I29 there will be no driving connection from such rockshaft to the countershaft 95, and that countershaft will remain at rest while the rock-shaft returns to its initial position.

The action of the clutch between the loose pulley H2 and the shaft 3, and so the rocking movement of the rock-shaft I29, and the intermittent movement by half-turns of the countershaft 95, and therefore the movements of the shear blade H and the wire-receiving plate 90, are all controlled by the cam plate I20; and. that cam plate I20 is controlled by trip mechanism set in motion by the on-coming wire 35 when the latter protrudes a predetermined length beyond the cut-off bushing 10. The control mechanism for this is best shown in Figs. 1, 3, 13, 14, 15, and 16.

The rack-bar I06 remote from the main frame 25 is slotted transversely of its length on its under face to receive slide-bars HI and I42 respectively, each of which is spring-pressed to the left (Figs. 13 and 14) by compression springs I43 acting between the rack-bar I06 and upturned fingers at the left-hand ends of those slide-bars. These slide-bars are in the vertical planes of the two wire-receiving grooves 9| and 92 of the wirereceiving plate 90, and move with such wirereceiving plate 90 transversely of the wire support 80. Each slide-bar MI and I 42 near its right-hand end has a pair of downwardly extending clamping fingers I44, which receive between them a stop-wire I45 which may be adjusted lengthwise between the pair of clam-ping fingers and locked in any desired adjusted position by clamping screws I46. Thus there are two stopwires I45, and they lie in the two wire-receiving grooves 9| and 92 respectively and extend into those wire-receiving grooves from the right-hand ends thereof to any desired distance as determined by their adjustment. If they extend so far that their .ends have a tendency to sag out of such wire-receiving grooves, they may be supported by one or more supports I41 clamped on the wire support 80 and having upper surfaces on both sides of such wire support flush with the flat upper face of that wire support. The left-hand ends of the stop-wires I45 determine the lengths of wire 35 to be cut off; for the free or right-hand end of the oncoming wire 35 strikes the left-hand end of one of the stop wires I45 to produce the cutting-off operation, and initiates that cutting-oil operation by moving the stopwire I 45 to the right against the action of the associated spring I43.

Either slide-bar I4I 011I42 may be brought into line with a third slide-bar I50, which is permanently in the vertical plane of the wire 35 and is suitably mounted to slide in that plane lengthwise of the wire 35. As shown, this third slide-bar I is carried by a sub-frame I5I supported from the pedestal 84. The slide-bar I50 has a downwardly projecting finger I52 in which there is an adjusting screw I53 for limiting the leftward movement (Figs. 13 and 14) of that slide-bar; which may be moved to the right by either slide-bar I 4| or I42, whichever is in line with it and with the on-coming wire 35.

A pin I 55 extends upward from the slide-bar I50, through a slot I56 in the sub-frame I5 I. This pin I55 is connected by a tension wire I51 to a downwardly extending arm I58 on a rock-shaft I59; and that rock-shaft I59 also has on it a horizontally extending operating finger I60 which extends into and fits slidably in a transverse hole I5I in a. slide-bar I62 that carries the cam plate I20. The slide-bar I62 is pushed upward by a compression spring I63 adjustable in compressive strength by a thumb-screw I64. The spring I53 thus tends to move the cam plate I20 to its unclutching position shown. in Fig. 11; and also tends to rock the rock-shaft I59 clockwise (Figs. 3 and 9) and to act through the wire I51 to move the slide-bar I50 leftward (Fig. 14).

The operation is as follows:

At the start of the operation, the shear blade II and the wire-receiving plate 90 are either both in theirrearmost position, shown in Figs. 1, 4, 5, and 17, and in full lines in Figs. 6 and 7, or both in their foremost positiomshown in dotted lines in Figs. 6 and 7. When the motor 26 is started it drives the spinner shaft 32, the feed-roll-drive shaft 52, and the clutch-drive pulley II2 continuously in the direction of the arrows of Figs. 1 and 2, to provide a continuous drive for the spinner 34 in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1, and for the feed-rolls 45 and 45 in the directions of the arrows of Fig. 3; but the clutch shaft H3 and all parts driven from it are at rest, with the rocking gear-segment I21 down and the rock- "shaft I29 at its motion-limit m the clockwise direction, because the cam plate I20 is in the unclutching position shown in Fig. 11.

The wire 35, supplied from any convenient source such as a suitably supported roll of wire, is fed into the spinner 34 from the left, and between the two feed rolls 45 and 46; and is carried forward by the feeding action of those two continuously rotating feed rolls. This feeding action pulls the wire 35 through the constantly rotating spinner 34, in which the wire is effectively straightened by the action of the several pairs of pusher dies 40, and pushes it forward through the cut-off bushing I and across the open space just beyond the cut-off bushing into that one of the wire-receiving grooves 9I and 92 which is in line with it.

Assume that that groove is the-groove 9|, as it is when the wire-receiving plate 90 and the shear blade II are in their rearmost position shown in Fig. 1. The stop wires I45 are adjusted in the wire-receiving grooves 9I and 92, conveniently before the operation starts, for the desired length into which the wire 35 isto be cut; and that one of these stop wires which is in the wire-receiving groove 9I (on the" stated assumption that the wire-receiving plate 90 is in its rearmost position) in the path of the on-coming wire 35 as it travels to the right along that wire-receiving groove-9|. When in that travel the advancing end of the wire 35 strikes the stop wire I45, it moves that stop wire to the right; and the stop wire I45 carries rightward with it the slide-bar I4I' (see Figs. 13 and 14) so that that slide-bar engages and movesrightward the slide bar I50. That rightward movement of the slide-bar I50, and of the pin I55 carried thereby, pulls the tension wire I5'I rightward; and the tension wire I5I, acting through the arm I58, rocks the rock-shaft I59 counterclockwise (Figs. 3 and 9) so that the operating finger I60 carried thereby will shift the slide-bar I62 and cam plate I downward from the unclutching position of Fig. 11 to the clutching position of Fig. 10. This downward movement of the cam plate I20 allows the clutch dog II5 to swing into the circle of travel of the teeth II5 of the constantly rotating clutch ring II4, so that it is engaged by the first tooth I I5 which thereafter comes to it in that rotation. This looks the normally stationary shaft II3 to the constantly rotating pulley I I2, to drive that shaft II 3 in the direction of the arrow of Fig. 10; but that movement of the shaft H3 is for one revolution only, as will now appear.

During the first half of the rotation 'of the shaft II3 the connecting rod I26 is moved upward, to rotate the rock-shaft I29 counter-clockwise (Fig. 12) and during this counter-clockwise movement of the rock-shaft I29 it acts through,

the ratchet drive I33-'I3'I-I35--I34 to move the counter-shaft 95 one half-turn, also counterclockwise (Fig. 18). This half-turn acts through the eccentrics 91 and to move both the shear blade 'II and the wire-receiving plate 90 forward, from their rearmost positions to their foremost positions. The shear blade II shears off the wire 35, at the desired point as determined by the setting of the stop wire I45, and does so by the movement of the shear blade II in one direction, and as it shears the wire it stops the wire for a small fraction of a second; but as soon as the shear blade has passed the plane of the wire 35 the momentarily stopped wire 35 at once resumes its rightward movement. The wire-receiving plate 90 as it moves forward carries the sheared-off length of wire forward, and off of the wire support 00, thus moving the wirereceiving groove 9I out of line with the on-coming wire and the wire-receiving groove 92 into line with that on-coming wire. The sheared-off length of wire drops immediately out of the wire-receiving groove 9I, as the fresh-cut end of the on-coming wire now passing to the rear of the shear blade II passes across the space beyond the cut-off bushing Hand on to the wire support 00 and into the wire-receiving groove 92. The cut-off length of wire starts to drop by the time the wire-receiving plate 90 has reached its forward position, and so by the time the shaft II 3 has completed a half-rotation, and by the time the rocker-arm I21 has reached the top of its movement and the rock-shaft I29 has reached the end of its counter-clockwise movement. As the cut-off length of wire drops out of the groove 9|, it becomes disengaged from the stop wire I45; and thereupon the spring I53 quickly moves the slide-bar I62 upward to return the cam plate I20 to its unclutching position (Fig. 11). The spring I63, acting through the finger I50 and the rock-shaft I59 and arm I58 and tension wire I51, also returns the slide-bar I50 to its leftward limit of movement, ready for the next operation; and the spring I43 returns the slide-bar I4I leftward to normal position, and if it fails to do so for any reason is supplemented by the action of the spring I63 and the overlap of the slide-bar I50 over both slide-bars MI and I42. These returning movements all happen very quickly during the early part of the second half-turn of the shaft I I3; so that as the one full turn of the shaft II3 approaches its end the cam plate I20 acts on the operating finger IIO to move the clutch dog IIB out of engagement with the tooth II5 which has been acting on it, and thus permits the shaft I I3 to stop at the end of that movement under the action of the brake shoe I2I. During the second half-turn of the shaft I I3, the rockerarm I2I is moved downward and the rock-shaft I29 is moved clockwise (Fig. 12) to their respective normal positions; but in this clockwise movement of the rock-shaft I29 the ratchet mecha- 75 nism permits the counter-shaft to stand still,

through the cut-off bushing |0 to the rear of, the shear blade II. across the open space beyond the cut-off bushing; and into the groove 92. When the advancing wire 35 reaches the stop wire I45 in that wire-receiving groove 32, it acts on that stop wire to repeat with the slide-bar I42 the action that has just been described for the action of the slide-bar I; to move the slidebar I50 and the tension wire I51 to the right. and thereby to move the cam plate I into clutching position to permit another one-revolution movement of the shaft 3. This time, however, that one-revolution movement of the shaft H3, and the resultant half-turn of the countershaft 95, act through the eccentric pins 91 and 98 to move the shear blade 'II and the wirereceiving plate 90 backward, from their forward position to the fill-line position shown in Figs. 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7. This cuts off a length of wire by the rearward movement of the shear blade II, so that immediately thereafter'the advancing wire may passinf-rontof the shear blade II; and it discharges that cutoif length of 'wire through the open space at the rear ofithe wire-supporting plate 80, between it and the guide plate 82. Upon that discharge of this cut-off length of wire, the cam plate I20 and the slide-bars I82 and I50 and I42 are; returned to'their normal position by the action of the springs I63 and I43.

This cycle maybe repeated indefinitely, to out off desired lengths from the ever-advancing wire 35. That advancingwire 35 is straightened by the spinner 34 as it approaches the cut-off bushing I0, and is stopped only for a fraction of a second by the shearing operation. The stoppage of the wire. is whollywithin the first half of the one revolution made by the shaft II3, so that the wire is already again advancing by the time the second half of that one revolution starts; and the stopping time is so short that the pusher dies I do not cut into, or burn, or even appreciably mar, the momentarily stationary wire 35. In addition, the timing is desirably such that the split-second stopping of the wire 35 is done by the shear blade 'II itself, before the slide-.

bar I50 reaches its rightward limit of movement, so that there is no tendency to buckle thewire between the cut-off bushing I0 and the stop wire I; and the action of the shear blade is so quick that it produces in the wire no appreciable deviation from a straight out at the cut-off plane. All this makes for greatly increased speed of operation.

I have described the operation of my wire straightening and cut-off mechanism as applied to solid wire, but it works equally well with metal tubing in place of solid wire. If the tubing is fairly sturdy, no change at all need be made in the mechanism. However, for thin tubing, it is desirable to modify the shear blade slightly. The modified shear blade II is shown in Figs. 20 and 21. The difference consists primarily in the shear-blade portion that does the actual shearing. In place of merely a downward tongue as shown in Fig. 7, that is suitable for solid wires and for sturdy tubing, for thin tubing I provide the shear blade II with two wire openings I10 that completely surround the tubing 35 in and near the shearing-off plane, and that flare slightly than the body of the shear blade, as is clear from Figs. 20 and 21, to facilitate the dropping out of a cut-oil length of the tubing 33', as is ,indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 20. By havin the shear blade completely surround the tubing at the shear plane the tubing is effectively prevented from buckling at the shear during the shearing-off operation.

Instead of connecting the clutch shaft II3 to the counter-shaft 95 by the connecting rod I25, the rocking gear-segment I21, the pinion I28, the rock-shaft I29, and the ratchet mechanism I33 I34-I35I3Iil31, 'Im'ay connect that clutch shaft to that counter-shaft by an interlocking intermittent gearing, shown in Figs. 22, 23, and 24.

In this modification, if desired, the clutch shaft H3 and the counter-shaft may be and conveniently are in the same vertical plane; but in any event their adjacent ends overlap longitudinally, as is clear from Fig. 22. The clutch shaft H3 is a one-revolutionv shaft, as has already been explained; and is driven from the constantly rotating pulley II2 and clutch-ring II4 by the one-revolution-clutch mechanism already described, although in Fig.22 the clutch ring H4 is shown as larger instead of smaller than the pulley I I2. The counter-shaft is provided with the eccent cs 91 and 98 already described in connectlon 'lwith'2it" and shown-in Fig. 5 and others,

foroperatin'g the shear blade II and the wirereceivingplatefl respectively. ""On "the overlapping ,ends of the clutch shaft I13 and the counter'shaft 95 are two gears I8I and I82 respectively, and two interlocking cam plates I83 and I84 respectively, all keyed to the shafts on which they are respectively mounted. The gear I8] is the drive gear; and is a mutilated gear, having teeth I85 for slightly less than half its circumference, the forwardmost tooth I86 of which is a heavy knocker-tooth, and

having its teeth cut away for the remainder of its circumference, as is clear from Fig. 23. The gear I82 is the driven gear; and has teeth I81 around its entire circumference, with diametri cally opposite knocker teeth I88each adjacent to a wide tooth-space I89 to mate with the knocker-tooth I86 on the gear I8I. The cam plate I83 has a large-radius portion I9I ex: tending slightly more than and a small: radius portion I92 extending slightly less thari 180; and the cam plate I84 is a disk with two diametrically opposite curved locking notches I93 in its periphery of such size and location that they interlock with the large-radius portion I9I of the cam plate I83, as is clear from Fig. 24.

In operation, the part normally stand in substantially the positions shown in Figs. 23 and 24. When by the operation of the lengthmeasuring device the one-revolution clutch interconnects the clutch ring I I4 to the clutch shaft II3, that clutch shaft II3 starts its one revolution; which is counter-clockwise as seen in Figs. 23 and 24, as is indicated by the arrows. Asit starts this counter-clockwise movement, the lar eradius portion I9I of the cam plate I83 moves out of the notch I93 to unlock the cam plate I84 and the knocker-tooth I35 on the drive gear I 8| engages a knocker-tooth I88 on the driven gear I82 and thus starts the counter-shaft 95 and the parts carried thereby into movement in a clockwise direction, as is shown by arrows in Figs. 23 and 24. The teeth I85 and I8! mesh toward the right (Fig. 20) from that shearingoff plane. The shear-blade portions III that lie beneath the tubing 35' are made narrower to continue this movement for a half-revolution of the counter-shaft 95, during' which time an unnotched portion of the cam plate I84 rides freely in the small-radius portion I92 of the cam plate I88.

At the end of the half-revolution of the countershaft 95, the last or farthest-clockwise tooth I85 passes out of engagement with the teeth I81; and the large-radius portion I9I of the cam plate I83 enters the opposite locking notch I93 from the one which it had last engaged. This both stops the driving of the counter-shaft 95 and locks that counter-shaft in stationary position exactly at the end of a half turn.

But the clutch shaft I I3 continues for a second half-turn, in the manner that has already been described; during which time the cut-away portion of the gear I8I passes over the ends of the teeth I81 so that there is no driving connection between the two gears I8I and I82, and the largeradius portion I9I of the cam plate I88 slides in a locking notch I93 of the cam plate I84 to lock the counter-shaft 95 in fixed position.

During its half-turn the counter-shaft 95 moves the shear blade II and the wire-receiving plate 98 from one limit of movement to the other, in the manner already described.

This operation is repeated, to make a full turn of the clutch shaft. I I3 and a half-turn of the counter-shaft 95, for each cutting-01f operation.

I claim as my invention:

1. A wire cut-ofi machine, comprising feed rolls for feeding wire, a cut-off bushing through which said feed rolls feed wire, a reciprocable shear blade cooperating with said cut-off bushing to shearthe wire, said shear blade being arranged to shear the wire by its movement in either direction of its reciprocating movement and to clear the wire at both ends of that movement, a constantly rotating member, a member adapted to be driven thereby, a one revolution clutch for intermittently connecting the constantly rotating member to the driven member, an eccentric linked to the shearing device, and driving means between said driven member and said eccentric which drives the eccentric during only the first half revolution of said driven memher and during said first half-revolution moves the eccentric through a half-revolution to move the shearing device through a reciprocating stroke in one direction, and means responsive to the feeding of a predetermined length of wire for energizing said one revolution clutch, in combination with a wire support onto which the wire is fed from said cut-oil bushing, a wire-receiving plate cooperating with said wire support and having two positions therein for receiving the oncoming wire, the wire-supporting plate being spaced axially of the wire from said cut-oil bushing and shear blade, and means for moving said wire receiving plate from one to another of said wire-receiving positions.

2. A wire cut-01f machine, comprising feed rolls 14 1 for feeding wire, a cut-oil bushing through which said feed rolls feed wire, a reciprocable shear blade cooperating with said cut-oi! bushing to shear the wire, said shear blade beingarranged to shear the wire by its movement in either direction of its reciprocating movement and to clear the wire at both ends of that movement, a constantly rotating member, a driven member adapted to be clutched thereto, a one revolution clutch therebetween, driving means between said driven member and said shearing blade including a plurality of eccentrics operating in series and converting the rotational movement 01' each to linear movement whereby the speed varying effects of such conversions are compounded, and means for energizing said one-revolution clutch, in combination with a wire support onto which the wire is fed from said cut-ofl bushing, a wire receiving plate cooperating with. said wire support and having two positions therein for receiving the on-coming wire, the wire-supporting plate being spaced axially of the wire from said cut-oil? bushing and shear blade, and means for moving said wire receiving plate from one to another of said wire-receiving positions.

3. A wire cut-oil machine as defined in claim 1 in which the clutch actuating means comprises a stop associated with each of the wire-receiving positions of the wirereceiving plate in position to be actuated by the on-coming wire, and a trigger actuated by each of said stops when said stops are respectively in wire engaging position, and means connecting said trigger to actuate said clutch.

4. A wire cut-oil machine as defined in claim 2 in which the clutch actuating means comprises a stop associated with each of the wire-receiving positions of the wire-receiving plate in position to be actuated by the on-coming wire, and a trigger actuated by each of said stops when said stops are respectively in wire enga ing position, and means connecting said trigger to actuate said clutch.

. JOHN H. MOORE.

REFERENCES CITED- The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNI'I'ED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 9,294 Adt July 13, 1880 666,707 Shuster Jan. 29, 1901 804,321 Hoxie Nov. 14, 1905 973,571 -Shuster- Oct. 25, 1910 1,435,438 Wright Nov. 14, 1922 1,505,991 Wiseman Aug. 26, 1924 1,695,255 Matteson Dec. 11, 1928 1,925,845 Moore Sept. 5, 1933 

